Astros acquire relief pitcher Oliver Perez from Diamondbacks

The Houston Astros have acquired lefthanded pitcher Oliver Perez in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Houston Astros have acquired lefthanded pitcher Oliver Perez in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks, the clubs announced early Saturday morning. 

Houston sends 19-year-old lefthanded pitcher Junior Garcia—not to be confused with the 19-year-old righthanded pitcher named Junior Garcia also in the Astros’ system—to Arizona in exchange.

Perez, who turns 34 later this month, has enjoyed a career renaissance as a reliever after a disastrous run as a starter with the New York Mets. He has a 3.10 ERA in 48 appearances this season, with 37 strikeouts and 11 walks. His 3.36 strikeouts per walk is the best ratio of his career. 

Perez becomes the second lefthanded reliever in the Houston bullpen, along with Tony Sipp. 

The Astros currently sit in first place in the AL West, 1.5 games ahead of the Los Angeles Angels. Baseball prospectus puts their odds of winning the division at 61%, while Fangraphs has their division odds at 62.1%. 

- Dan Gartland